Anne Marie Miller

Category: Church

  • trip to kansas city

    chris and are leaving this thursday to go to kansas city to hang out with some old friends and family and former coworkers from westside family church. we have been hoping and praying that our friend and lake pointe’s media pastor, wes hartley, would be able to fly us up in his plane so we could avoid airline travel as well as avoid the dreaded 9 hour drive.

    it looks like the weather will be rainy, but okay to fly in on thursday and sunday. i ask that you pray for the weather to be great flying weather, and for safety for all of us as we travel to and fro.

    the cool thing is, you can actually SEE where we are when we’re flying. on thursday or sunday, just go to flightaware.com and where it says “Flight/Tail#” enter in “N7379K” and it will pull up a radar of his current flight (if we are flying) or a log of his last flight. pretty sweet huh?

    anyway, we are so thankful for wes and his generosity to take time out of his busy schedule to help a couple of kids out.

    and if you live in kansas city and can pick us up from (probably) the airport in lee’s summit to take us to get our rental car on thursday (not sure what time yet…maybe lunch time or a little after??), we will be thankful for you too. (hint, hint)…we’ll buy you a starbucks or something!

    to see our most recent flying adventure with wes in a quick little video, you can click here. there are some cool downtown fort worth & downtown dallas skyline shots.

  • work

    thanks to one of my amazing coworkers, jordan, i met a couple cool guys today who travel with life choices. anyway, after getting to hear what they are doing across the country (they were headed down to waco) and signing a copy of one of my articles for them (which was really uncomfortable…i could never be famous and do that on a consistent basis…i know i turned bright red!!) we somehow started talking about oswald chambers and i was reminded i needed to catch up as he is usually a daily read for me. i missed this on monday, and thought it was extremely applicable to those of us who are involved in serving our local church, whether paid or volunteer. so, enjoy the wisdom below and when you’re done, check out what life choices is doing!

    Beware of any work for God that causes or allows you to avoid concentrating on Him. A great number of Christian workers worship their work. The only concern of Christian workers should be their concentration on God. This will mean that all the other boundaries of life, whether they are mental, moral, or spiritual limits, are completely free with the freedom God gives His child; that is, a worshiping child, not a wayward one. A worker who lacks this serious controlling emphasis of concentration on God is apt to become overly burdened by his work. He is a slave to his own limits, having no freedom of his body, mind, or spirit. Consequently, he becomes burned out and defeated. There is no freedom and no delight in life at all. His nerves, mind, and heart are so overwhelmed that God?s blessing cannot rest on him.

    But the opposite case is equally true–once our concentration is on God, all the limits of our life are free and under the control and mastery of God alone. There is no longer any responsibility on you for the work. The only responsibility you have is to stay in living constant touch with God, and to see that you allow nothing to hinder your cooperation with Him. The freedom that comes after sanctification is the freedom of a child, and the things that used to hold your life down are gone. But be careful to remember that you have been freed for only one thing–to be absolutely devoted to your co-Worker.

    We have no right to decide where we should be placed, or to have preconceived ideas as to what God is preparing us to do. God engineers everything; and wherever He places us, our one supreme goal should be to pour out our lives in wholehearted devotion to Him in that particular work. “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might . . .”

  • you’re fired {take this job and…}

    in october 2006, lifeway christian resources announced that over 1300 staff members of southern baptist churches had been fired in 2006 alone. this is just one denomination and one year, so it’s not inclusive of all churches or all reasons for leaving a job (being fired or resigning or moral failure…or the ever-so-tricky “forced to resign”).

    i left one southern baptist church in february 2006 after being on staff for a little over two years and now work at another southern baptist church. i can think of at least twenty (without even trying) people i know who have been fired, quit, moved to another church or left a church staff for health reasons between 2006 and 2007. max lucado himself is slowly stepping down from his responsibilities at oak hills church.

    many of my good friends have been burned out by working at churches. my own father left the ministry in 1996 after being run over and pastoring four churches in ten years. early last year, i swore i’d never work in a church again because of the intense pressure (but fortunately, a couple of people were able to move me along, and although at times it seems insanely hectic, lake pointe has been such a place of healing).

    i reflect today on this because in the last three weeks i have learned of a couple more of my friends who have left the ministry. my heart breaks for their hearts. for their families.

    my heart is saddened by the general condition of the western church culture. there are so many health problems reported by church staff. i ended up in the hospital for a week in 2005. a friend in his early twenties who is a youth pastor developed ulcers. heart problems seem to be the norm though, with middle-aged pastors and stress (and perhaps the fact generally seaking, most churches serve junk food more often than communion?)

    i cynically digress. please forgive me. i do not take the sacrament of communion in such light regard…

    the sad thing is NOTHING IS GOING TO CHANGE ABOUT THIS UNLESS SOMEONE DOES SOMETHING ABOUT IT.

    but what? seriously, what kind of example are we setting by turning ourselves into little, overworked stress balls with heart disease and ulcers? by our broken families? our broken dreams?

    i dont have the answers, but i sure as heck want to talk about this.

  • i need your help!

    i know a lot of people reading this work at a church, and most of you go to a church somewhere. so, i ask for you to help me out.

    i work in the communications department at lake pointe, and i am doing a little research. i would LOVE for as many of you as possible to send me your worship guide/bulletins/whatever-you-call them. and if you have a newsletter or something, feel free to throw that in too. you might think yours rocks. you may think it sucks. i don’t care. please just send me one! i’ll send you something cool back…as an incentive. i dont know what that looks like yet…but…it will be cool.

    please drop me a note below to let me know you’ll be sending something, so i can keep an eye out for it. as far as where to send it:

    anne jackson
    c/o lake pointe church
    701 interstate 30
    rockwall, tx 75087

    (and for you internet stalkers out there, there’s no way you would ever find my office…it’s hidden…so don’t even try).

    by the way…there are those with whom i work who don’t think anything good comes out of blogging…and i would love to show them otherwise…how hundreds of people (no pressure) can flood my inbox here with their church’s printed goods!!

    thank you so much!

  • Give me a U

    I rarely post actual journal entries on my blog, but i was feeling very Jerry Maguire last night as we drove to a screening of the movie first snow (which, by the way, was so-so). You know the moment when Jerry wakes up in a cold sweat and composes his mission statement [not memo]? I had one of those moments last night. It is very rambling (thus the reason i rarely post journal entries) and hopefully by some miracle you will make it through….Here goes:

    Unity. Something I have been seriously testing my heart on lately. Unity within the Church is so hard to come by lately it seems. From internally (my perspective as a PK growing up, and spending collectively seven years in full time vocational ministry)…it is so easy to tear down individual people with whom you work, to get frustrated with a certain department or ministry within the organization.

    And externally: gossip, lying, betrayal; the Body of Christ beating up other members without a second thought. Generally speaking, local church congregations are competing instead of partnering to impact the communities in which we all are placed to be the Christ to those around us.

    While there is always room for constructive criticism, iron sharpening iron per se, it should be handled with love, and Biblically, face-to-face. Not behind closed doors (or behind backs).

    In the area of communication within a local church, something I have been a part of for the last two years, we especially are ever-so-fierce (without intending to be, I’m sure).

    I have both been on the giving and receiving end of other church’s communication pieces, being hypercritical of their design and mistakes. I have also been hypercritical of ministries within the congregation where I serve.

    What is troubling is the ease of which I have done this, and also have seen it done. When I truly reflect, I feel such conviction about conversations in which I have taken part, grumbling about this person, this ministry, this church…and how desensitized many of us have become.

    These rants (subtle or obvious) litter our everyday conversations, blog posts, emails. And if we are so vocally open about them, what is truly the condition of our hearts concerning unity?

    What is the condition of mine?

    We tear apart the Body, piece-by-piece, oblivious to our actions…or their consequences. Again I quote the great Colson: Unity is the single most effective form of evangelism. I am learning how important this unity is. For the sake of believers…but also for the sake of those who don’t yet believe.

  • costly

    i wrote about this several months ago, but i read this again today and decided to repost it.? I think it fits in with some of the stuff we’ve been discussing, and to be quite honest, my mind has been completely empty the last few days.

    Cheap grace is the deadly enemy of our Church. We are fighting today for costly grace.

    Cheap grace means grace sold on the market like cheapjack?s wares. The sacraments, the forgiveness of sin, and the consolations of religion are thrown away at cut prices?

    Cheap grace means the justification of sin without the justification of the sinner?

    Cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, communion without confession, absolution without personal confession.

    Cheap grace is grace without discipleship?

    Costly grace is the treasure hidden in the field; for the sake of it, a man will gladly go and sell all that he has?it is the kingly rule of Christ, for whose sake a man will pluck out the eye which causes him to stumble.

    Costly grace is the gospel which must be sought again and again, the gift that must be asked for, the door at which one must knock.

    Dietrich Bonhoeffer

  • being the body…identity crisis (part 2)

    if you haven’t read the most recent comments on being the body (part 1), i recommend you do so before continuing onward. there are a lot of good thoughts, examples, and truths shared by so many of you.

    two common themes which showed up and i’d like to discuss further are:

    1. we live in a consumeristic culture, so it’s difficult for the church to reach people in ways where they don’t feel comfortable or justified in “going” to church. some questions brought up in the book: since when is the gospel of christ comfortable? since when is confronting sin comfortable? grace is all encompassing and forgiveness covers all sin, as well as the fact we serve and worship a loving god, but the truth is god cannot stand to look at us if it weren’t for the cross. does this message get watered down? not necessarily from the pulpit or platform, but from the layers the church (local) adds in order to “bring people in” so they may be reached?
    2. the church’s call is to go and make disciples. in what ways do you see local churches obeying this call? is there too much emphasis placed on “saving people” and as RobP said in the comments, once any sort of commitment is asked or sacrifice is required, people bail out because they have been conditioned by society to get something out of every investment. do we also condition them by the bells and whistles and programs and not communicate the necessary sacrifice in being a christ-follower?

  • being the body…identity crisis (part 1)

    thanks for all your thoughts & prayers. i am in my layover and KCI and enjoying a very slow but free wifi connection. i thought i’d take this chance to start a discussion on here. i hope you’ll participate.

    our teaching pastor, wes hamilton, let me borrow a book by chuck colson called “being the body.” if you have even the smallest bit of your heart that you love the church with, i strongly recommend you getting this book. it is almost 500 pages long and a very deep read, but it has been one of the most intriguing books i’ve tackled in a while (I’m only on page 130 287).

    i have been taking notes throughout, and thought i’d post a little bit about what i’m learning and hopefully open up some discussion. the first part of the book is about how the current church is in the midst of an identity crisis. here are some bullet points i took out that i’d love for you to think about and discuss.

    Misconceptions of the Church/Identity Crisis

    -The Church is a building

    1. The word church is from the Greek word Ekklesia, which means gathering of people. It really was used more in a political sense in the New Testament times but believers began using it to describe their gatherings
    2. Instead of an abundance of “go and tell” it has become “come and see”

    -The Church goer is a consumer

    1. What’s in it for me?
    2. Go where you “feel” good – where you feel “led”
    3. Many churches aim to provide support over salvation
    4. Help…over holiness
    5. And convey the sense of “spiritual equality” and not God-ordained authority
    6. Many churches also unintentionally encourage spectators instead of participators
    7. People are invited to “discover themselves” in churches — and self realization and God realization are diametrically opposed
    8. Consumerism works against the unity of the universal Church. You know you have heard conversations about people church hopping because of better programs, and I know it may not be the heart of any particular church to “steal” these people away, but let’s not be stupid here. It happens. And unity is the single greatest evangelical tool the church has — It shows that Jesus is who he claimed to be.

    -Ending Thoughts

    It’s no surprise people who aren’t religious or don’t go to church don’t understand its identity and mission. In fact, I am sitting in front of several ladies who are talking about the fact they have no clue about anything religious (They also think Kwanzaa is an Asian holiday). But when Christians don’t know what the church is…it’s a CRISIS.

    your thoughts?

    (next topic: fellowship)

  • weekend thought…wonder

    lately, i’ve been wondering so much about the history of my faith. i’m not questioning the inerrant truths of the bible, but my soul is lacking the rich past of the christ-followers who journeyed centuries before me; their traditions (and most importantly the meaning behind those traditions), their ideals, their loves, god’s glorification through them.

    my soul is lacking the mystical and unexplainable aspects of my faith.

    i think sometimes we try too hard to explain the unexplainable and in doing so, we somehow lessen the power of the mystery and beauty of our heavenly father has; and unfortunately we confine our existence on the earth to glorify him into a neat little box.

    although biblical application to our lives is necessary for our survival, not to mention our very worship and communion with god, why must we always have an answer for everything that happens in life? why must we justify everything?

    we drain the wonder out of all things wonderful.

    and then the only thing we are left wondering about is why our lives lack the spark and mystery we had as children…in a time before we knew it all.

    in a time where all we did was wonder.